Ridgewater ranked top public auto mechanics program

Ridgewater ranked top public auto mechanics program

WILLMAR, MN — Ridgewater College has been ranked the top public college for students pursuing an auto mechanic certificate.

The Washington Monthly magazine recently ranked nearly 100 public and private community colleges.

Washington Monthly has rated universities and four- and two-year colleges in the past. However, this is the first time it has ranked schools offering non-degree certificates and diplomas, according to a release from the college.

Students in Ridgewater’s Automotive Service Technology Program can earn a 65-credit diploma or a 72-credit associate of applied science degree.

The top-rated private school in auto mechanics is another Minnesota school — Dunwoody College of Technology in Minneapolis.

To rate schools, Washington Monthly looked at U.S. Department of Education information about students’ median earnings three years after graduation. Information about student debt was considered, too.

The Ridgewater rankings show earnings three years after graduation of $36,460 with estimated debt of $11,868. The debt is about half what it would be for a student at a private school, according to the release. Just more than 4 percent of the Ridgewater students’ earnings go to debt payments.